§ 605-a. Scholarships for academic excellence. 1. (a) Beginning with
the nineteen hundred ninety-seven--ninety-eight academic year and
thereafter, scholarships for academic excellence shall be awarded to
students completing their high school programs for attendance in
approved programs. The academic merit criteria for awarding these
scholarships will be determined by taking the weighted average of a
student's score on Regents examinations taken by students prior to their
senior year in all of the following five subject areas: comprehensive
English; global studies; U.S. history/government; level 3 math; and
science, which shall consist of the weighted average of the combination
of exams taken in chemistry, biology, earth science and physics. For
those schools not offering regents examinations in all such five subject
areas, awards shall be based on criteria developed by the commissioner
and subject to the approval of the director of the budget.

(b) School allocation. (i) Each high school in the state, as defined
in regulations of the commissioner adopted for such purpose and subject
to the approval of the director of the budget, shall be allocated: for
the nineteen hundred ninety-seven--ninety-eight academic year, a single
scholarship of one thousand dollars; and for the nineteen hundred
ninety-eight--ninety-nine academic year and thereafter, a single
scholarship of one thousand five hundred dollars which shall be awarded
to the top scholar of such school as determined by the academic merit
criteria set forth in paragraph (a) of this subdivision.

(ii) The remaining scholarships for the nineteen hundred
ninety-seven--ninety-eight academic year of one thousand dollars, and
for the nineteen hundred ninety-eight--ninety-nine academic year and
thereafter, of one thousand five hundred dollars shall be allocated to
high schools in the state as defined in regulations of the commissioner
for such purpose and subject to the approval of the director of the
budget, in the same ratio that the number of students enrolled in the
twelfth grade at such high school in the prior school year bears to the
total number of students who were enrolled in the twelfth grade in the
state during the prior school year. The ratio shall be multiplied by
the number of scholarships available and the results, rounded to the
nearest whole number, shall be the number of scholarships allocated to
the school. Such awards shall be distributed on the basis of the
academic merit criteria as set forth in paragraph (a) of this
subdivision.

(iii) All scholarships of five hundred dollars shall be allocated in
the same manner as described in subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph.

2. In the event that a scholarship awarded is declined by a student,
or for any reason revoked by the commissioner or the president, its
benefits shall lapse and there shall be no further payments or awarding
of such scholarship.